Becky's comments about keeping records of what dances are called are interesting. My experiences that this is often done at longer events with multiple callers in the same day, but I've never heard of it done at a community dance series. I do agree that it would be easy to do and potentially beneficial to many.
Brian Hamshar
Virginia
Becky Nankivell <becky4dance(a)gmail.com> wrote:
>Andy Shore (Tue, 29 May 2012 14:05:31) wrote:
>
>"How did the previous caller fair and were there any pitfalls or
>problems in that session that I can learn from or avoid? What dances
>have been called thus-far and should I avoid ones that are too similar
>(e.g., there were LOTS of dances with "balance the ring, california
>twirl" progressions called this weekend.)"
>
>Once upon a time when I was starting calling and also involved with
>organizing the multiple-caller contra dance in Tucson, Arizona, we
>maintained a notebook where each caller (or an organizer) recorded the
>dances that had been called in an evening, and a few other notes on
>the evening. The idea was that this would be a resource that a caller
>could use in planning the next dance.
>
>I don't know that any of the callers except for me actually ever used
>this (and I know I didn't use it frequently), and after a few years
>the practice was dropped.
>
>This still seems like a good idea to me for venues where there are
>multiple callers. I know that I keep a record myself so that I don't
>call the same dances too frequently at one venue, (and in planning an
>evening I check for the distribution of figures). If you're not a
>regular dancer at a venue (whether you're visiting, or just dancing
>less frequently), without some record it's hard to know what's been
>called.
>
>Nowadays, an electronic record would be easy to share, via web posting
>or a file. Our not using the TFTM notebook was probably because the
>dance planning happened at each caller's home, and the notebook wasn't
>handy.
>
>Are there communities that are keeping such records and making them
>available? Comments on that from organizers and/or callers?
>
>The trick is, as with any record keeping, it requires someone or some
>people to make sure it happens and to keep track of the file(s)...
>
>As an additional note, I believe the dance records are still in the
>TFTM archives, and undoubtedly show some interesting changes in the
>style of dances called. As someone with an interest in dance history,
>I think it would be great if there were more records like this out
>there.
>
>~ Becky
>_______________________________________________
>Callers mailing list
>Callers(a)sharedweight.net
>http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
> aware of it being done for contra dances at all.
>
> For English, several of the dances have email lists for people
> interested in that series and programs are posted after the fact. One
> person - Mary Luckhardt - maintains cumulative spreadsheets of dances
> called for all the series. I also collect that information from the
> posted programs and keep my own lists. This is important in English for
> a couple of reasons: There's a core set of dances that we agreed some
> years back we'd like to have done at least annually at our regular
> dances, so that we can maintain some kind of common repertoire in the
> face of the explosion of new and newly-reconstructed dances. We like to
> visit the dances that are on the Playford Ball program (different each
> year) so that people don't come to them cold, so it helps to know which
> ones have been done. And we don't like to repeat dances from week to
> week unintentionally. In English, a repeat is really a repeat - same
> figures, same tune, only one tune per dance. (And in venues like Palo
> Alto English, with a house band that's mostly the same from session to
> session, that tune is likely to sound very much the same each night it's
> played.)
For our Jamaica Plain Gender Free English dance we've kept a book to record dances for a long time. SInce 2010 I have been keeping a database up-to-date and exporting PDF files to our web page - one sorted by dance name and one sorted by evening.
http:www.lcfd.org/bgfe - links near the bottom of the page
Thank you David for these incredible resources - I just have to be careful
and allot myself certain amounts of time or I get so caught up in them that
I get nothing else done.
BTW, Someone just gave me 4 old cds of a bunch of square dances - they look
to be privately made cds with no real labels on them and just a list of the
dances on each (no authors/callers/etc). Bob Livingston is checking them
out. I found one that's to the song "The Battle of New Orleans" which I
looked/searched and found out it was recorded by Bill Castner.
Patricia Campbell
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: David.Millstone(a)valley.net (David Millstone)
> To: trad-dance-callers(a)yahoogroups.com, callers(a)sharedweight.net
> Cc:
> Date: 30 May 2012 19:46:20 -0400
> Subject: [Callers] Square Dance resources
> Dear dance colleagues,
>
> Here is information for those who are interested in square dances.
>
> 1) NEW SQUARE DANCE VIDEOS
> You probably already know about the Dare To Be Square weekend held last
> November at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. An earlier
> e-mail provided links to 100 videos from that event. I'm happy to announce
> that an additional 25 video clips are now available of edited interviews
> with the six callers who were on staff: Phil Jamison, Larry Edelman, Bob
> Dalsemer, Jim Mayo, Larry Edelman, and Bill Litchman.
>
> http://squaredancehistory.org/**omeka/exhibits/show/brasstown-**interviews<http://squaredancehistory.org/omeka/exhibits/show/brasstown-interviews>
>
> This link will take you to one part of the prototype of our new Square
> Dance History Project. The home page for the exhibit provides links to
> each caller, and that subsequent page will offer two tabs, one for the
> caller's bio and one that takes you to a page listing those interviews,
> with a summary of the contents. Click on the photograph or underlined link
> to the right of each summary to bring up the video clip itself. In all,
> there are about two hours of interview footage available for your viewing.
>
> Our web designer and others continue to fine-tune the user interface and
> the underlying database, so we're not ready for the official launch of the
> full site yet... but there seemed no reason not to share this particular
> digital exhibit now.
>
> 2) THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS!
> Funding for the videotaping was provided by a grant from Country Dance and
> Song Society. We also want to thank the other organizations that are
> providing financial support for the Square Dance History Project: the Lloyd
> Shaw Foundation, CALLERLAB, and The ARTS.
>
> 3) LINKS TO DANCE VIDEOS
> In case you've misplaced the information, you can view the original 100
> dance videos at two locations:
>
> YouTube channel
> http://www.youtube.com/user/**SquareDanceHistory/videos<http://www.youtube.com/user/SquareDanceHistory/videos>
>
> VidCaster
> http://squaredancehistory.**vidcaster.com/<http://squaredancehistory.vidcaster.com/>
>
> To date, the dance clips on these two channels have been viewed nearly
> 25,000 times in the five months since they were uploaded. Feel free to pass
> along any of these links to others who might be interested.
>
> 4) NEW SQUARE DANCE CHANNEL
> In addition to the YouTube channel listed above, we've started a new
> channel that will include some of the additional material that is being
> uploaded:
>
> http://www.youtube.com/user/**SquareDanceHistory2<http://www.youtube.com/user/SquareDanceHistory2>
>
> Among the clips are a dozen examples of French-Canadian squares, footage
> of CT caller Bob Livingston, some Super 8 footage taken 30+ years ago by
> Bob Dalsemer in West Virginia and western Pennsylvania, several
> demonstration numbers by groups showcasing the Lloyd Shaw style of dancing
> and choreography, squares from the Missouri Ozarks with lots of jigging,
> dances called by Dick Leger, Earl Johnston, Red Warrick and many more,
> examples and instruction in Kentucky set running, some precise modern
> square dancing from a Tech Squares weekend, and a talk by Herb Egender, who
> was a member of Pappy Shaw's Cheyenne Mountain Dancers on their first trip
> to Washington, DC in 1939. In all, there are nearly 60 square dance videos
> on that channel with more being added each week.
>
> 5) RINER, VA, DARE TO BE SQUARE
> Another DTBS event was held in early May in Riner, Virginia, with Phil
> Jamison, Michael Ismerio, and Bill Ohse as callers. Bill Ohse (b.1938) is a
> highly-regarded West Virginia caller of traditional squares; we now have
> video footage of his sessions and several interviews with him. Edited
> footage of these Appalachian squares will be uploaded shortly.
>
> 6) UPDATE ON THE DTBS SYLLABUS
> Finally, I've been told that the final draft of the Brasstown syllabus and
> the master CD with more than 150 mp3 audio files (including instruction as
> well as dance calls) are ready for final layout and production. CDSS is
> aiming to have the combination booklet/CD available by this summer's dance
> camp season. Stay tuned... we'll certainly let you know when this treasure
> trove is ready.
>
> In the meantime, enjoy the comments by our six well-informed callers, and
> thanks for your continued interest in our rich square dance heritage.
>
> David Millstone
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>
>
Dear dance colleagues,
Here is information for those who are interested in square dances.
1) NEW SQUARE DANCE VIDEOS
You probably already know about the Dare To Be Square weekend held last November
at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. An earlier e-mail provided
links to 100 videos from that event. I'm happy to announce that an additional
25 video clips are now available of edited interviews with the six callers who
were on staff: Phil Jamison, Larry Edelman, Bob Dalsemer, Jim Mayo, Larry Edelman,
and Bill Litchman.
http://squaredancehistory.org/omeka/exhibits/show/brasstown-interviews
This link will take you to one part of the prototype of our new Square Dance History
Project. The home page for the exhibit provides links to each caller, and that
subsequent page will offer two tabs, one for the caller's bio and one that takes
you to a page listing those interviews, with a summary of the contents. Click
on the photograph or underlined link to the right of each summary to bring up
the video clip itself. In all, there are about two hours of interview footage
available for your viewing.
Our web designer and others continue to fine-tune the user interface and the underlying
database, so we're not ready for the official launch of the full site yet... but
there seemed no reason not to share this particular digital exhibit now.
2) THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS!
Funding for the videotaping was provided by a grant from Country Dance and Song
Society. We also want to thank the other organizations that are providing financial
support for the Square Dance History Project: the Lloyd Shaw Foundation, CALLERLAB,
and The ARTS.
3) LINKS TO DANCE VIDEOS
In case you've misplaced the information, you can view the original 100 dance
videos at two locations:
YouTube channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/SquareDanceHistory/videos
VidCaster
http://squaredancehistory.vidcaster.com/
To date, the dance clips on these two channels have been viewed nearly 25,000
times in the five months since they were uploaded. Feel free to pass along any
of these links to others who might be interested.
4) NEW SQUARE DANCE CHANNEL
In addition to the YouTube channel listed above, we've started a new channel that
will include some of the additional material that is being uploaded:
http://www.youtube.com/user/SquareDanceHistory2
Among the clips are a dozen examples of French-Canadian squares, footage of CT
caller Bob Livingston, some Super 8 footage taken 30+ years ago by Bob Dalsemer
in West Virginia and western Pennsylvania, several demonstration numbers by groups
showcasing the Lloyd Shaw style of dancing and choreography, squares from the
Missouri Ozarks with lots of jigging, dances called by Dick Leger, Earl Johnston,
Red Warrick and many more, examples and instruction in Kentucky set running, some
precise modern square dancing from a Tech Squares weekend, and a talk by Herb
Egender, who was a member of Pappy Shaw's Cheyenne Mountain Dancers on their first
trip to Washington, DC in 1939. In all, there are nearly 60 square dance videos
on that channel with more being added each week.
5) RINER, VA, DARE TO BE SQUARE
Another DTBS event was held in early May in Riner, Virginia, with Phil Jamison,
Michael Ismerio, and Bill Ohse as callers. Bill Ohse (b.1938) is a highly-regarded
West Virginia caller of traditional squares; we now have video footage of his
sessions and several interviews with him. Edited footage of these Appalachian
squares will be uploaded shortly.
6) UPDATE ON THE DTBS SYLLABUS
Finally, I've been told that the final draft of the Brasstown syllabus and the
master CD with more than 150 mp3 audio files (including instruction as well as
dance calls) are ready for final layout and production. CDSS is aiming to have
the combination booklet/CD available by this summer's dance camp season. Stay
tuned... we'll certainly let you know when this treasure trove is ready.
In the meantime, enjoy the comments by our six well-informed callers, and thanks
for your continued interest in our rich square dance heritage.
David Millstone
Andy Shore (Tue, 29 May 2012 14:05:31) wrote:
"How did the previous caller fair and were there any pitfalls or
problems in that session that I can learn from or avoid? What dances
have been called thus-far and should I avoid ones that are too similar
(e.g., there were LOTS of dances with "balance the ring, california
twirl" progressions called this weekend.)"
Once upon a time when I was starting calling and also involved with
organizing the multiple-caller contra dance in Tucson, Arizona, we
maintained a notebook where each caller (or an organizer) recorded the
dances that had been called in an evening, and a few other notes on
the evening. The idea was that this would be a resource that a caller
could use in planning the next dance.
I don't know that any of the callers except for me actually ever used
this (and I know I didn't use it frequently), and after a few years
the practice was dropped.
This still seems like a good idea to me for venues where there are
multiple callers. I know that I keep a record myself so that I don't
call the same dances too frequently at one venue, (and in planning an
evening I check for the distribution of figures). If you're not a
regular dancer at a venue (whether you're visiting, or just dancing
less frequently), without some record it's hard to know what's been
called.
Nowadays, an electronic record would be easy to share, via web posting
or a file. Our not using the TFTM notebook was probably because the
dance planning happened at each caller's home, and the notebook wasn't
handy.
Are there communities that are keeping such records and making them
available? Comments on that from organizers and/or callers?
The trick is, as with any record keeping, it requires someone or some
people to make sure it happens and to keep track of the file(s)...
As an additional note, I believe the dance records are still in the
TFTM archives, and undoubtedly show some interesting changes in the
style of dances called. As someone with an interest in dance history,
I think it would be great if there were more records like this out
there.
~ Becky
--- Mac wrote:
The only problem I remember was when we had a really hot square danced fiddler
and the callers called about 8 squares in a row (but they all knew they were doing
it) We did get a couple unfavorable comments on that one.
--- end of quote ---
People were upset because there were only eight squares, I assume, and they wanted
more ;-)
David Millstone (in the process of uploading footage of WV caller Bill Ohse, recorded
at Dare To Be Square earlier this month)
While sitting in the Atlanta airport waiting for my delayed flight home from the wonderful "Catapult! Showcase" contra weekend, I was musing on various observations and lessons learned watching, listening and dancing to the various callers and bands featured at the event. In addition to being a contra caller for about 6 years, I've been a MWSD caller and teacher for 23 years and have done some caller coaching and mentoring and been on the staff of several MWSD caller schools. The caller coach part of me never really takes a break and I'm always looking for interesting ways to explain and impart the many skills and techniques that callers and teachers need to master.
On my flight I started listening to one of my favorite podcast series - The Tobolowsky Files - by actor Stephen Tobolowsky (here's his page on IMDB http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0864997/ - think Ned Ryerson in Groundhog Day - bing!). He tells wonderful stories about his life. I happened to listen to Episode 55 "The True Arena" where he talks about the difference between practice and preparation and the importance of each. He talked about them in the context of his former hobby of equestrian sports and dressage as well as in acting, but his observations apply to any performance activity.
We can all practice certain aspects of contra calling: learning a new dance, metering out words in different ways, trying dances with different kinds of tunes, etc. Preparation is something different and includes things like programming (what dances will I call, what alternates should I have ready?) What will the hall, band and acoustics be like? What will the "floor level" of the dancers be? Do I have any idiosyncrasies in my own style or choice of words that my local dancers are used to but might be issues with a more varied crowd? How did the previous caller fair and were there any pitfalls or problems in that session that I can learn from or avoid? What dances have been called thus-far and should I avoid ones that are too similar (e.g., there were LOTS of dances with "balance the ring, california twirl" progressions called this weekend.) There's lots to add to this list. Give the podcast a listen and tell me what you think!
Stephen makes the distinction at around the 8:20 mark and he puts it far better than I ever could.
You can find "The Tobolowsky Files" podcasts at
http://www.slashfilm.com/category/features/slashfilmcast/the-tobolowsky-fil… or
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tobolowsky-files/id339001481 or
http://feeds.feedburner.com/tobolowskyfiles
iTunes link for Ep #55 http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tobolowsky-files/id339001481#
Note also that Episode #10 starts with a wonderful old square dance recording.
Andy Shore
andyshore(a)gmail.com
http://andyshore.com/
Great apologies for the slow response but thank you SO very much for all the advice on the microphones!!! I got responses both online and offline which will help our dance committee decide which to get. I'm leaning towards the SM58 handheld but it's a committee decision so it will be fun to see what comes out of it. :)
Anyway - I should have responded sooner... MUCH thanks for the help caller community!
Emily in Ottawa
Seeking caller and musicians for special event community dance
Date: Friday, July 6th, 2012
Time: 6:30pm-
Place: Raymond, NH
The dance is an evening activity for adults and youth 14-18 (around 90 total) participating in a historical reenactment of Western Expansion (1840s.)
Contact Noel Metzger, joeandnoel(a)yahoo.com
I've usually preferred a hand held mic most of the time, It just feels more
natural to me and less "rock star" like. I like to move around a lot as I
teach and call, so this usually works. Our local family dances rarely have
more than 30 dancers, so I usually call from the set with no mic.
I recently had to use a headset to lead some Civil War dancing for 8th
graders with the Dodworth Saxhorn Band. We had to have the dancers line up
perpendicular to the band, so the head of the set was not near the conductor's
mic. I borrowed a vocalist's headset to use. It worked really well, except the
transmission unit kept coming lose as I capered around. There wasn't a good
place on my costume to anchor it.
Your choice.
John B. Freeman
Dancing Master
The Dodworth Saxhorn Band
